It might be Skip Bayless’ hottest take yet. It’s an opinion so scalding that it’s shared, devoutly, only by those closest to him, and seemingly no one else.

Skip Bayless is real.

The Fox Sports 1 talking head, formerly the divisive ESPN talking head, is adamant he is authentic. He speaks confidently and clearly, a sentient machine that spits out LeBron James rips and Dallas Cowboys appraisals like others eat, provoking viewers enough to keep coming back to “Undisputed,” his debate show, whether in earnest or in outrage. At least that’s what Fox Sports 1 is gambling on to the tune of about $22 million over four years, according to Sports Illustrated.

The early returns have been … disputable. The show has closed the gap considerably in the ratings on the appropriately named “First Take”: Fox Sports 1 brags the program Stephen A. Smith now headlines beat FS1 by a 23:1 factor a year ago, and today that’s been whittled down to 3:1. A portion of that convergence can be attributed to the “First Take” ratings tanking; indeed, ESPN responded Friday by announcing “First Take” will move from ESPN2 to the more visible ESPN proper, switching spots with “SportsCenter.” The ratings still have been slow for “Undisputed,” for which Fox is paying a fortune.

Regardless, it’s still been the same Bayless — perhaps more unhinged, he says, because of a loosening of the boundaries Mickey Mouse and ESPN drew for him — a cartoon character he insists, to no end, is bona fide.

“I have never contrived an opinion,” Bayless told The Post on Thursday in Midtown, where the Los Angeles-based show filmed in advance of UFC 205. “We’ve never gone in a meeting and said, ‘How about you take this side?’ Nope. Never, ever.”

This came as a bit of a surprise to his new co-host, NFL Hall of Famer Shannon Sharpe.

“I think the biggest thing is, judging a book by its cover,” Sharpe said about his preconceived notions of Bayless. “People have this perception, maybe I had this, maybe I looked at Skip like [gives quizzical look]. … But he is one of the best men that I’ve worked with, and he’s open to any discussion. We don’t fake debate. What you see is 1,000 percent authentic.”

To prepare for “Undisputed,” Bayless’ morning begins at 2 a.m. — but don’t tell him that. The creature of habit refuses to adjust his clock or his routine going from the East Coast to the West. He offered his watch as proof.

“If I knew I were getting up at 2 a.m. in L.A., I would jump out the window,” Bayless said. “So I’m getting up at 5 o’clock, East Coast time. I’ve been doing it for 12 years, so I stay here [in my mind]. The night before, I’m watching carefully and I’m just being me. These are my feelings, they’re from my heart and from my soul. … They’re in concrete when I walk in the building at 4 a.m., which used to be 7 a.m. here [on the East Coast].”

It follows, then, that the pundit-provocateur hates change, perhaps best seen in his professional breakup with Stephen A. Smith. The longtime “First Take” co-hosts are still “brothers” who talk often, Bayless said. He spoke wistfully and hopefully about the mouth he left behind. He emphasized that his new sparring partner, Sharpe, is a great fit, but he still looks back on his days with Smith, and still looks ahead, hoping somehow the two can be brought back together.

Stephen A. SmithPhoto: Getty Images

“I’m just wanting to reunite with him,” the 64-year-old Bayless said of Smith, who was let go at the Worldwide Leader in 2009 before returning in 2011. “[Sharpe is] made for this — he’s got big personality, big opinions, he’s forceful. He might not have Stephen A.’s gift of gab because no one on this planet does, but he’s got a big one. Our vibe is different than what I had with Stephen A.

“I had this magical sorta chemistry you can’t coach or teach [with Smith]. … I thought it was a billion-to-one shot I would ever get to work with him [at ESPN]. He eventually became a fixture on ‘First Take.’ This is like pie in the sky, but I still feel like someday, we might be united. I thought the first time [when Smith left ESPN] we’d never get back together, but maybe, someway, somewhere, we’ll work together again.”

Away from ESPN and Smith, Bayless said his restraints are loosened. The behemoth that is Disney-owned ESPN, which has fired analysts such as Curt Schilling for controversial beliefs, weighed on Bayless. He would second-guess what was coming out of his mouth on the fly, careful to follow the vague, loose parameters. Now, he says, he’s “free.”

“Stan Van Gundy had taken a stance publicly that I didn’t agree with because he shouldn’t use that platform to make that stance,” Bayless said about the Pistons coach hammering the election of Donald Trump. “He blasted Evangelical Christians, and I hate that label. I’m a Christian, believe in the Bible and God, stone me. But that’s what I believe. … It was offensive to me that he said that, sort of just broad-brushed Christians as believing in Donald Trump. I didn’t believe in Donald Trump. … I plunged [on the show], and maybe people were uncomfortable with that, but I’m pretty sure they have my back here.”

“We went there, when no one else would,” Sharpe said. It’s (appropriately) debatable whether that is true, but Bayless is insistent that no one will control what the show talks about.

For now, on his nine-week-old program, Bayless remains a man who inflames without regret, perhaps even without awareness. The ever-contrarian is consistent: He doesn’t believe he’s a contrarian, and he has learned to ignore the rioting, laughing Twitter users watching his show. It was mentioned there are death threats directed his way daily on Twitter, and he claimed ignorance.

“The truth is I don’t [know what people are saying about me],” said Bayless, who has more than 2 million Twitter followers. “The truth is I don’t read it. I did … when did we start on Twitter? Maybe I started nine years ago? The first year I did read the responses or whatever, and I found they were starting to pollute my brain. They were so vitriolic.

“I respected their right to have the same strong opinion I did, but it was getting me nowhere reading them. I don’t need to let them define who I am, so I finally said: I don’t follow anybody, why should I even read anybody?”